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Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Bliss n Eso Rising Up

The story today is most simply a great song. From the beginning flails of the cymbals under Mike J 'Rivers'' drum sticks, "People Up on It" is a song that blasts through the speakers with a vengeance and power that enthralls me. Though rap and hip-hop tend to be a little outside my range sometimes, this song has just the right mix of hip-hop attitude and hard-rock sneer. Redefining a sound that I feel in love with the first time I heard bands like Linkin Park and Hollywood Undead, Bliss n Eso (featuring Xzibit) have a sick track that is power and thrash attitude from start to finish.

But that's only half the story. Making a guest appearance on the track is Ben Graham, lead guitarist for the Australian hard-rock band Into the Night. Graham's guitar licks serrate my ears and with the notes going off in the background as the drums rumble and roll underneath likes bombs in a war zone, my pulse is shot full of adrenaline in a way that leaves me gasping for breath at the end. The power that Graham lends to the song through hard guitar chords and pounding rhythm is only intensified by Rivers' rage-filled beats on the drums. As Bliss n Eso tear it up vocally, I can watch as Rivers breaks down his drums in a ceremony of driven attitude.
More than anything, "People Up on It" is a perfect example of the brilliant marriage between hip-hop and hard-rock. Building on the foundation that Linkin Park and Hollywood Undead have made their careers on, Bliss n Eso make "People Up on It" one of the tracks that will get you going and be stuck in your head for days to come. And the low-key, minimalist video just serves to add more edge to an already blistering song.